May 28 (Reuters) - Canvas Venture Fund, an early-stage investment firm spun out of established venture player Morgenthaler Ventures, has landed its first general partner from outside the Morgenthaler fold.

Paul Hsiao has left behemoth New Enterprise Associates to join the new firm, Canvas said on Wednesday. At NEA, Hsiao worked on enterprise software companies such as Boingo Wireless Inc, digital publisher Say Media and commercial online realtor 42Floors.

Morgenthaler spun Canvas off last year to focus on early-stage software companies. Its inaugural fund, which has $175 million in cash, invested in such holdings as wealth-management company FutureAdvisor, customer-engagement monitor Totango and doctor-patient relationship tool HealthLoop.

Canvas Venture's existing general partners are Rebecca Lynn, Gary Little and Gary Morgenthaler, who remain partners at Morgenthaler. NEA often co-invests with Morgenthaler. (Reporting by Sarah McBride; Editing by Jan Paschal)